


What Should I Do?

by Dunuelos



Series: Harry Potter, Lone Traveler [93]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-17
Updated: 2019-08-17
Packaged: 2020-09-06 09:07:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,092
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20288944
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dunuelos/pseuds/Dunuelos
Summary: A Twelve Year old Percy Weasley recognizes that something is wrong about his rat and asks out loud what he should do. Someone shows up to answer.





	What Should I Do?

**Author's Note:**

> "The Lone Traveler: Originally a Mortal Human Wizard and dimensional traveler, this being ascended to Godhood as a reward for services to the Creator. Very often arrives and leaves using a spectacular aura of blue light. His Divine name is Marek Ilumian, Fury of the Light, a Minor God of Knowledge and Travel and Patron God of Free Will. His appearance normally associated with preventing apocalypses or helping to ensure Free Will can be exercised by mortals. All assistance should be rendered when he appears. Does have a mischievous streak, especially when accompanied by a Goddess from another dimension who appears as a small innocent girl."
> 
> Rupert Giles Watcher's Diaries, 27 September, 2000

A twelve year old boy found himself standing in front of the pond over the hill from his home. He reached down to the edge and picked up a stone and threw it such that it skipped across successfully.

He sighed. He had come to the pond to get away from his rambunctious younger brothers, his teasing older brothers, and his smothering mother to think about something that had suddenly occurred to him only in the last few days of his first year.

He had been being tested by his Transfiguration Professor and Head of House for extra credit after having done the practical demonstrations required of a first year.

The boy, quite ambitious for a Gryffindor, had almost begged his Head of House for a chance to earn extra credit and she had set him to study ahead. The extra credit questions were the result.

However, one question had struck a nerve: "How could one distinguish between a real animal and a transfigured one?"

After having been given a perfect score, he had enthusiastically reviewed the episode in his mind as he made his way back to his dorm. He would never tell anyone, especially his family, that he had been indulging as he didn't want to be teased by his siblings or scolded by his parents, who very often preached humility.

That didn't mean he didn't enjoy the feeling of smug superiority that he had done so well.

However, that episode had triggered a realization as he walked into his dorm and peered at his bed.

There, lying on his bed, was the rat that he had found in his family's garden years earlier and had begged his father and mother to allow him to keep it as a pet.

Reviewing his extra credit question in his mind, his eyes had widened and he had then retreated from his dorm and from Gryffindor tower to go to the library. No one had questioned his actions as he was not particularly close to anyone else in his dorm and he was known to spend a lot of time there.

He had then researched, as much as possible, rats and their characteristics. From everything that he could find, the lifespan of a rat was 3 years and longer was not common. However, he had caught the rat years ago and it was now eight years old – at least.

He had been very careful to keep his observation to himself as he didn't want to bug anyone about it.

Once he had gotten home, his father had acquiesced to a trip to Diagon Alley as a reward for his outstanding performance at Hogwarts. And after his father had bought him an ice cream at Fortescue's, he had been allowed to go to the bookstore and look over books that he might want to get using his own pocket money.

His father had been called away for his job and had decided that, unlike his younger brothers, he was old enough to floo home himself and so he was allowed to finish his trip himself as long as he was home by 4:00 latest and did not wander outside of Diagon Alley.

Luck had been with him. This gave him a chance to visit the Magical Menagerie so that he could ask a few questions of the clerk there. And that visit had confirmed that even magical rats could only live to an absolute maximum of 4 years – and that was extremely rare.

And so he was now torn. He looked at the pond and asked out loud, "What should I do?"

Unexpectedly, a voice spoke from behind him. "What should you do about what?"

Startled, Percival Weasley whirled around in fright to find the source of the voice.

Standing about fifteen feet away was a man in muggle denims and, despite it being summer, wearing a black jacket that seemed to be made of leather. He was leaning casually against a tree as though he had no care in the world.

"Where did you come from?" Percy asked.

The man nodded his head toward the nearby road and said, "Over yonder." The man shrugged. "I happened to see the pond and decided to take a break."

Percy thought about that and then asked, "Um. Are you …" he paused and then continued, "a Hogwarts graduate?"

The man chuckled. "I went there long ago. But the question you're probably asking is am I a Wizard or a Muggle. And seeing that I know what those are, that should answer your question."

Percy nodded. "It does." Surprisingly, despite the caution his mother had often drilled into her children regarding strangers, especially strange wizards, he felt no suspicion or fear in facing the unknown man. And so he was somewhat willing to answer when the man spoke again.

"So, anyway, what were you asking yourself about?" he asked.

Percy paused and then sighed. "At the end of the year, I realized that there was something strange about … my pet." There. That was vague enough. "And I don't know what it means and so I don't know what I should do about it."

The man looked away for a moment with a thoughtful look on his face. "I see," he replied. He looked back at Percy. "What do you find strange?"

Percy considered it and decided to answer. "Well, he's been alive for about twice as long as he should be. At first I just thought that it was very special because it lived so long. But then I thought about it and decided that wasn't good enough?"

"Why is that?" the man asked.

Percy huffed as he considered how to explain it. "Well, either it's a new species that no one has ever heard of, which I don't think is true, or there is something wrong with it."

The man nodded and then, after a moment said, "Well. Before you can decide what you _should_ do, you probably need to decide what you _can_ do. So what can you do?"

Percy thought about it. "Well, I could do nothing."

The man nodded. "True. What else?"

"I could go and get it and take it to my mother immediately," Percy said. He felt nervous about that answer.

The man nodded thoughtfully. "Okay then. What would your mother's reaction be? How would she react?"

Percy thought about it. "Well, she might dismiss it as a concern, or …" Percy felt really nervous then.

"Or?"

"She could become really upset and start yelling. And that could upset my siblings too."

The man nodded. "And if your pet is aware that it's unnatural, what could happen? Can you risk a reaction with your siblings around?"

Percy shook his head. "No. If that happened, then someone could be hurt."

"Okay then. What else could you do?" the man asked curiously.

Percy thought about it. "Well … I could speak to my father when he gets home."

The man nodded. "Can you speak to him alone? Away from everyone else?"

Percy thought about it. "I can do that. I can ask to speak to him in his shed where he keeps his Muggle batteries."

The man chuckled. "Your father has a few of those?"

Percy sighed and nodded. "He's fascinated with them. And rubber ducks. He's been trying to figure out what purpose they have. Oh. And how Muggle airplanes stay up in the sky."

The man laughed. "Well, I can explain that."

Percy was actually intrigued. "Oh? Why do Muggle planes stay up in the sky?"

The man paused for a moment and then asked, "You ever fly a broom?"

Percy was amused. "In my family? We learn how to fly before we learn how to do household charms."

The man laughed. "Quiddich mad family?"

Percy nodded emphatically. "Like you wouldn't believe."

The man looked at him. "But not you?"

Percy shrugged himself. "I don't really see the point."

The man chuckled. "Most people – especially men but many women too – are mad about some sport or another. In the Muggle world, it's football and cricket. In Britain it's Quiddich. In America it's Quadpot."

Percy rolled his eyes. "Even if Quiddich is less interesting than most people make it, Quadpot is just silly."

The man laughed. "Just think of it as exploding snap with a quaffle instead of cards. Wizards like things that blow up."

Percy considered that for a long moment. "True."

The man chuckled and said, "Anyway, back to how planes stay up. You ever notice how the wind whips around faster as you got faster on the broom?"

Percy nodded. "Yes. Sometimes if you get right behind someone else on a broom, it can even affect your own broom."

"Right," the man said. The man stood up and looked around, finally spying a larger branch that had fallen. "Go grab that and bring it over here."

Percy looked and saw the branch that the man pointed at. He walked over and lifted the end of it. It was actually quite large. And so instead if lifting it, he dragged it over. Once he had done so, he stepped back.

The man looked down at the large branch. "Right then. Keep back – I'm going to cast a few spells on this."

Although the man seemed friendly and was wearing Muggle clothes (making it unlikely that the man was a pureblood supremacist or former death eater and was more likely Muggleborn or a Blood Traitor like his family had been labeled) that didn't mean that Percy was not careful. And so he was cautious about being in front of the man when he was holding a wand. In fact, he was close enough that he thought he could jump behind a nearby tree if he decided to cast a curse. That the man asked him to stay back made him less cautious – but not carefree.

The man pulled a beautiful wand from an arm holster and quickly and silently cut the branch into several pieces. With a casual wave of the wand one of the pieces change over into a miniature item. It had a long body and wings that came out the side of it. With another wave, another piece had changed. It looked similar. The man then put his wand back where he had gotten it from.

"Okay. Look at both of these. Look especially at the shapes of the wings."

Percy walked over and keeping the man in his field of sight, he looked at the two. One of them had a relatively flat wing. The other one's wing was actually a bit curved. "Why the difference?"

"Well," the man said, "one of them will fly better. Thing about what I asked you about air. And then pick the one you think will fly better."

Percy looked at them. "Won't the one with the curve on the top of the wing cause the air to push down more on it?"

The man smirked. "Try throwing each one. Like this." He reached down and picked up on of them. He held it by the body and then pushed his arm forward. "Throw it with this motion very quickly, but let go." The man then held out the item.

Percy reached out and took it. He threw it. It flew for a few feet but dropped quickly. "Okay. Now throw that one." The man pointed toward the one with the more curved wings.

Percy picked it up and, repeating the same motion, threw it. He was amazed when instead of going flat or dropped, it actually flew _higher_. "Why did that happen?" he asked incredulously.

The man laughed. He pulled his wand and cast another silent spell causing the small glider to fly to his hand even as he put his wand away. "See here? The curve causes more air to flow past the wing. So instead of pushing down, the air actually causes it to pull up – as long as it's going fast enough. When it slows down (because of the laws of motion that Muggles have been researching for hundreds of years) the air is no longer pulling up and it falls down."

Percy was amazed. "Wow."

The man smiled and said, "I know. Tell your father to try to visit Muggle second hand book shops for a book about them written for children. A few sickles changed over at Gringotts or a Galleon or two should be enough to buy several used books in the Muggle world – books are far cheaper there because of how they make them. And Muggles love writing books about how things work for children that explains things in simple ways. Honestly, books written for people your age tend to be easier to understand than books written for adults. Quicker to read too."

Percy nodded. He then looked at the man and said, "Thank you." He paused and asked, "Can I take those to show my father when he gets home?"

The man chuckled. "Certainly. After you take care of the issue about your pet, it will be something that you can do with your father which he would probably enjoy immensely." The man paused and then asked, "How many siblings do you have?"

Percy sighed. "There are seven of us."

The man nodded. "Oh, right." The man looked thoughtful for a moment and then said, "Give me a few minutes."

Working quickly, the man quickly cut up the remaining sections of the branch into more pieces. Percy watched in fascination as the man created several more wooden gliders of various shapes and sizes from the other parts of the branch.

The man also summoned branches, sticks, and leaves that had fallen nearby and made a few other things.

Percy followed him as the man walked over and, upon finding a fallen tree, cut off a larger section and transfigured it into a boxy shape. A few more cuts and the man created several wheels. A few more pieces transfigured, a few permanent sticking charms and Percy Weasley was looking at a box on wheels. The man chuckled and then changed it over to a bright red color.

"What is it?"

The man shook his head. "I can't believe you asked that. It's a wagon. This one is wood rather than metal, but it should allow you to pull all of the gliders back to your home. And there should be enough for all of your brothers and sisters to play with them. And because of how I did it, the transfigurations should last … well long enough that you shouldn't have to worry about it." The transfigurations were actually permanent. "And I've cast a few unbreakable charms so that they shouldn't get broken by hard playing."

Percy's eyes widened. "Wow." He stuttered a quiet, "Thanks."

The man nodded. "Actually, it was fun to practice. I haven't done transfiguration like that in a long while and I could have gotten rusty. Now go on and pack them all up into the wagon."

Percy picked up the wagon handle and pulled it over to where the gliders were – the wagon moved easily. It took a few minutes, but they all fit and Percy was ready to go back.

"Okay then. Make certain you talk to your father about your pet. And have fun with all of those."

Percy thanked the man once more and then asked, "Why did you do all of this?"

The man's face took on a gentle smile. "You remind me of friends I made long ago, when I first went to school; a big family, poor in coin but rich in love. I grew up without parents or siblings and they were the closest thing I ever had to a family of my own." The man shrugged. "And so I used a few spells and wood that comes from the edge of your own property to maybe give such a family a bit of joy. It costs me nothing but a bit of time and a bit of effort."

The man then paused and looked at the young boy with a bit more solemnity and said, "Never underestimate the value of acts of random kindness. You might never see anything yourself in return, but such things can change the world for the better."

Percy nodded, thinking about what the man said. He then looked at him and said, "I'm certain that my mother would be glad if you came and visited. She enjoys feeding people."

The man laughed. "Thank you, but no. It's time for me to back to my traveling."

Percy nodded. "Well, thank you again. I should be getting back before my mother starts worrying. Will you visit again?"

The man shrugged. "You never know."

Percy nodded and then started pulling the red wagon and its contents that had been gifted to him and his family. He never noticed the light that appeared behind him. His eyes widened and suddenly he had a though at turned around. "What is your name?" he called.

His eyes widened as he saw that the man who had been so kind to a random stranger had disappeared. Percy rushed back to look to see if he could see where the man had gone, but there was no one there. Percy was surprised – he hadn't heard the man apparate.

* * *

Many things happened because of that chance encounter. A falsely accused man was freed from prison. The Boy-Who-Lived actually became a great friend to the Weasley family only a year later when Sirius Black insisted on bringing him over to meet them.

Arthur Weasley, taking the advice that had been passed to him, actually accumulated quite the collection of books on how things worked in the Muggle world. He no longer annoyed Muggle parents with inane questions either. Within ten years, he had transformed the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Department at the Ministry for Magic to a truly effective and efficient area. Its employees were consulted by anyone who had to have dealings in the Muggle world.

But the greatest change was that Percy Weasley, because of his insistence on kindness towards fellow students regardless of who they were or what house they were in, almost single-handedly began the transformation of the relationship between houses at Hogwarts. He was one of the most well-respected prefects and Head Boys that Hogwarts had in living memory.

Percy Weasley, in the years and decades that followed, was widely known as the one of the kindest man in Wizarding Britain and one of the most loved Ministers for Magic in history.

**Author's Note:**

> Attempting to get back closer to the original Traveler vibe


End file.
